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Kn ii<pf]hi t Le t ter
THE LEWIS CARR0LLkC3^S0CIETY OF NORTH AMERICA NUMBER 53 WINTER 1 996
In Memory of Maxine
by Joel Birenbaum
It is my sad duty to report that Maxine Schaefer
passed away on October 1 7, 1 996. 1 could say Maxine Schaefer,
secretary of the Lewis Carroll Society of North America for
the first twenty years, but I know I don't have to say that,
because we all knew Maxine. She was the one person with
whom every member of the LCSNA for the first 20 of our 22
years came in contact. From 1 974, when she was a founding
member, to 1 994 when she retired as Secretary, she was the
recipient of all correspondence, including new membership
forms. I think sometimes that few of us understood the im-
portance of this position.
Maxine was a one-person welcoming committee. She
was responsible for each member's initial impression of the
Society. Luckily she didn't think of it that way. She just acted
naturally. She treated new members like she treated every-
one, with respect and interest, answering their questions and
making them feel as if they had always belonged. After all,
we were all Carroll enthusiasts of one sort or another and I
don't think she differentiated in her treatment of anyone,
whether newcomers, authors of great reputation, or collec-
tors of Alice memorabilia. She instinctively knew we all had a
place in the LCSNA. Maxine was the human face of our Soci-
ety.
One of the reasons I was
so fond of Maxine was her views
on Carroll collecting. Where some
folks feel they must have high-
minded reasons for collecting,
Maxine did it for the sheer joy of it -
her passions were translations,
parodies, and memorabilia. It
brought her pleasure and thereby
enriched her life and the lives of her
family and indirectly the lives of
those kindred spirits with whom she
came in contact. How honest and
refreshing this was! She had that
true collector's belief that one's
collection had an independent
existence and - even when it was your own - was something
at which to marvel. She understood that she was just the
current caretaker of these many items and she followed the
one rule of collecting - never stop.
The idea of doing things non-stop was a recurrent
theme in Maxine's life. At the time of her death, she had been
a member of the LCSNA board for 22 years, had been an
employee of the National Health Institute for over 23 years,
and had been married to David Schaefer, past president of
the LCSNA and also a founding member, for 40 years. This
was clearly a woman with a work ethic not often seen these
days and an unparalleled sense of commitment. In all areas of
her life she was a constant, the person who was always there,
the one who could be counted on.
It is very difficult to lose a person like her. We have
learned all too well to expect her presence. She has given our
Society a sense of continuity. Luckily, we still have several of
our founding members who are active in the Society and can
preserve a direct connection to our past, but there is nobody
else who has had as much to do with our day-to-day activi-
ties as Maxine had. She will be missed in a very personal way.
If we are blessed, Maxine's soul will remain with us like the
grin of the Cheshire cat that remained long after the cat itself
had disappeared.
Maxine is survived by her
husband, David Schaefer; her chil-
dren, Edward and Philip Schaefer
and Ellen Schaefer-Salins; and her
grandchildren, Gregory and Laurel
Schaefer, and Mickey and Lena
Salins.
The family has requested
that in lieu of flowers, contributions
may be made
to the LCSNA,
1 8 Fitzharding
Place, Owings
Mills, MD
21117^416.
Ravings from the Writing Desk
of Joel Birenbaum
This issue I will be positively raving. That is, I will
rave in a positive manner. I really want to thank those who
took the time to fill out and return the survey from the last
issue. I was pleasantly surprised to get significantly more
than the one response I had expected (not that I didn't still
appreciate your response, August). Here are the results:
Thirteen people declared themselves to be academ-
ics, 16 collectors and 15 devotees. We even had two who
were casually interested (another surprise). We thought we
had a diverse group and indeed we do.
Twenty-four wanted information on new publica-
tions, 2 1 wanted academic articles, 1 9 wanted to keep abreast
of new collectibles and 17 wished for contact and discourse
with people with similar interests. Again, our diversity in
members' profiles result in a diversity in member needs. This
is not earth-shattering news either. I was a bit amazed that
everyone wasn't necessarily looking for interaction with oth-
ers of a similar bent. This could mean that we have some
members with the touch of the hermit in them, or perhaps
they are members who are so over-burdened in their sched-
ules that they just have no extra time for this. I'm sure there
are other interpretations. Feel free to mail them in.
The Knight Letter should have:
Less
The same
More
Academic content
3
12
12
Collectibles data
4
17
6
Personal accounts
6
11
10
I take these answers to give a relative indication of
which type of information the respondent likes best. I hope
when someone answers that they want less of something
they don't really mean that they are intolerant of the appear-
ance of that content in the newsletter. I don't expect every-
one to want to read everything in the Knight Letter, even
though I do. Just think of it as a delightful smorgasbord
where you take what you like and leave the rest. If the quality
of the information is the problem, then tell us immediately.
Here are some of the comments that were included:
/ don 't know what I expected when 1 joined the LCSNA.
I just knew that his books gave me great joy. I started
PEANUTS/CharlesSchuIz
collecting Alice things about three years ago and it is
now an obsession. I have a mild interest in the academic
aspects of the Society, but sometimes feel intimidated by
it. I would like to see a listing of all Lewis Carroll Soci-
eties. I wish we could have a book, booklet or map of all
the Lewis Carroll historic sites. I wish we could leave
our Lewis Carroll collections to the Society. Couldn 't
the president hold these items and offer to sell them to
other members? I enjoy the newsletter and your "rav-
ings".
This sounds like a letter I could have written when
I first joined. This intimidation theme is one that I hear more
often than I would like to. There are two ways to attack this
issue: we could ask everyone to be less intimidating, or we
could ask everyone to stop feeling intimidated. For myself, I
chose the latter. As for the information you requested, it is
indeed in progress on the World Wide Web. See URL http://
www.students.uiuc.edu/~jbirenba/carroll, which has a list-
ing of societies. There is also a link to a page of Carroll sites,
although the list is far from complete at this time.
In 1983, I did my doctoral dissertation at Southern Illi-
nois University, Carbondale. The title was "Lewis
Carroll 's Through the Looking-Glass as a Kaleidoscope
of English History: A Critical Approach to Scripting
Interpreter s Theatre. " It was fun! I went to NY for the
sesquicentennial celebration and research. Stan Marx,
may he rest in peace, took me under his wing and into
his home. I gave him a copy of the completed work Where
it landed I know not. The depth and breadth of his works
still amazes me!
I think that this points out the best aspect of our
organization, older members (or members in long standing if
you prefer) helping newer members. I can't think of a better
example than this one about our late founder, Stan Marx.
Stan isn't the only member who selflessly gave of himself.
The list is a long and distinguished one. I think this is the
essence of the LCSNA and the reason why Lewis Carroll
would mark the LCSNA with a white stone. Having been the
recipient of a couple of Carroll theses lately, I can tell you
that it is a pleasure to read the papers written by new- or
future members and realize that we were in some way an
influence on them. I am sure this is the way Stan felt.
' 'ALL RI6HT/ SAID THE CAT; AND THIS
TIME IT VANISHED GMTE SLOWLY... ENDIN6
UilTM THE 6RIN WHICH REMAINED SOME
TIME AFTER THE REST OF IT HAD 60NE"
6RINS ARE
EASY...
^crr^
/ would like to buy transcripts, audio or video record-
ings of meetings which 1 cannot attend. Unfortunately,
I 've little time and less money, being 30 years old with a
mild income and family. Perhaps when the next member-
ship list is published, you might ask members for their
internet address so that they can appear on the list. I
haven If got a computer, yet, but / soon will. Or make the
list available on the LCSNA web page.
Only two people have asked for tapes of meetings.
So far nobody has volunteered to take on this chore. As for
e-mail addresses, please send them to me at
joel.birenbaum@lucent.com and state whether you want it
included on our Web page. Note that is a new e-mail address
for me. While I'm at it, my area code has been changed. My
phone number is now 630.637.8530. Feel free to call me, I
enjoy hearing from members.
/ enjoy reading about member profiles. You are doing
such a GOOD job!
Thanks, Mom.
Personally, I wouldn 't mind seeing articles of important
Carroll criticism or biographical information, even if
reprints of old ones. Such would be for the benefit of
those who are not thorough Carroll experts.
Yes, sometimes we forget that not everybody knows
everything about Carroll. As far as reprinting old criticisms,
we can only do our own as the others are protected under
copyright.
The Knight Letter is terrific - suggest adding more bits
of entertaining filler -file stuff, quotes or snippets from
CLD's Life and Letters, bits of artwork/ cartoons, etc. in
little boxes. Also, how about a brief "member's profile "
in each issue - one or two of the "nobodies " who make
up our diverse membership. Ask everyone to fill out a
profile form, then contact the member when you 're ready
to use it.
I always thought we needed more snippets. Here's
one now.
"I see nobody on the road," said Alice.
"I only wish /had such eyes," the king remarked in
a fretful tone. "To be able to see Nobody! And at that dis-
tance too!"
How Carrollian to use the word nobody to such
advantage and so cleverly as not to offend. This could be a
good way for all of us to better understand the nature of our
membership (and what a good ship it is - always floating on
top of the water instead of the other way around).
I have attended several meetings, but will probably not
again - not very friendly welcome.
Thank you for your honesty. I would beg you for
one more chance. I think we have become a friendlier, more
receptive group aver the years. At least we try to be. If there
are any recent experiences at meetings that others would like
to relate, please do. If they are also negative we can work on
fixing the problems. If they are positive, perhaps they can
help encourage people who have abandoned us to return.
(K)night Letter = telegram sent at night. Why not
(K)night Mail = e-mail to members or on the WWW page?
Maybe someday, if people wish it, but for now "They
must go by the carrier." Be happy that they are not addressed
to Your Right Foot, Esq.
/ collect Alice in Wonderland Christmas ornaments. I
would be interested in information on that subject. Would
any other members be interested?
Might I suggest that you write an article with a list-
ing of your ornaments and see what happens.
Keep putting in as much as you can of everything.
A member after my own heart.
We are always interested in the views of our mem-
bers. If a survey is a good way to elicit your views, then we
will continue to send out surveys. I encourage you all to
simply drop us a line or give us a call whenever you have
something to say. We will better serve you if we know what
you want.
Let's end this column with an answer to a riddle.
Why is a raven like a writing desk? Each in its own way is a
dark wing site. If you need an explanation of the answer
you'll have to wait for the next issue.
A poem and two limericks
Lewis Carroll's innovative verse which follows com-
bines his love of nonsense with his facility in math-
ematics. It is a verse first published in Phantasmago-
ria (1869) and later reworked into a double acrostic in
Rhyme? and Reason? (ISM).
The second two are of unknown authorship, but
very much in this spirit. Answers on p. 9.
1 ) Yet what are all such thoughts to him
Whose thoughts are full of indices and surds?
x 2 +lx + 53= —
2 > ? - 3*
[ z 2 dz xcos — = \nye
J 9
3)8365,259,471.98450263
Leaves from the Deanery Garden
Just a note to let you know that interest in Lewis Carroll is
alive and well in Southern New Jersey.
Robert Mitchell
Mathematics and Computer Science Dept.
GlassboroNJ 08028
Professor Mitchell enclosed brochures advising of his lec-
ture "Lewis Carroll 's Contribution to Mathematics " at vari-
ous venues including The British Society for the History of
Mathematics conference at St. Martin 's college in Lancaster.
The LCSNA is conspicous in its absence (hint, hint).
I am sending my congratulations on a very fine Spring issue
of the Knight Leter and an addendum to its "Serendipity".
Toward the end of Nabokov's Strong Opinions (McGraw
Hill, 1 973), one comes upon another unforeseen reference to
Alice, namely to his Russian translation of Alice ("Anya")
in Wonderland and the fortunes it played in his life: "I recall
with pleasure that one of the accidents that prompted
Wellesley College to engage me as lecturer in the early for-
ties was the presence of my rare Anya in the Wellesley col-
lection of Lewis Carroll editions."
Best regards,
Fran Parker, Ph.D.
Rockville Centre, New York
I recently found, and bought, a beautiful set of Great Britain
stamps commemorating children's stories for "The Year of
the Child." The 1 3p stamp ending the series features Alice s
Adventures in Wonderland. The set is Scott's numbers 867-
870, and was issued July 11, 1979. After consulting Scott's
Stamp Catalog further, I discovered another, which I do not
have, in an issue of February 6, 1 990, Scott's number 1 307,
featuring "Smiles". The Cheshire Cat's is the smile commemo-
rated. These are the only two stamps I have found, from any
country, having anything to do with Alice or Lewis Carroll.
Does anyone know of others? There should be many, con-
sidering the enduring and widespread popularity of "Alice".
Maybe some will be issued in 1998, commemorating the death
of Lewis Carroll.
Sincerely,
Lester Dickey
85 High Holborn Street
Gardiner ME 04345
First of all, be generous about my English style! A moment
ago I was reading "To Stop a Bandersnatch", and I decided
to write you with a good pretext: I think Borges and Carroll
are a good combination, and I am the author of the Alice's
books translation into Spanish, for which Borges wrote a
beautiful, but short foreword (as all that he wrote, by the
way) many years ago. I also wrote about some (light) asso-
ciations between Borges and Carroll (and surely I'll do again,
because I'm working in an annotated translation of the Alice
books, the Snark and the Letters, that must be out at the end
of 1 997). I am very interested in what you say, and in authors
as Nabokov (I am a devoted reader of almost all his literature,
but specially of the short stories and of a very curious book
named Poems and Problems (bilingual poetry and chess prob-
lems)), which some years ago gave me a friend of mine, the
late argentine poet Alberto Girri. I fear I'm not as communica-
tive as "the other" Burstein about myself, but I'm also a
short stories author, who obtained some important awards.
By the way, do you know "the other Borges" story (by
Borges)? It's a pity I can't write English as I can read it, and
I beg your pardon again for all misspelled wordsof this and
next letters.
Eduardo Stilman
stilman@overnet.com.ar
/ am deeply honored by your kind words on my article (on
the web at the LCSNA site). Sr. Stilman has also sent me a
copy of the foreword containing Borges ' thoughts on
Carroll, which I am having translated and hope to secure
permission to have in the next KL.
In 1990 our small American publishing company, White Rab-
bit Press, brought out a series of four posters, entitled the
" 1 890- 1 990 John Tenniel/Lewis Carroll Centennial Edition",
drawn from The Nursery Alice (Cheshire Cat, Dodo, Mad Tea
Party, Caterpillar), with the assistance of Charles Lovett of
the Lewis Carroll Society (USA).
We have now decided to republish the "posters" as a
serigraphic limited edition, printed by one of the greatest
experts in the world in France.
As limited editions, more often than not, are S/N, that is to
say "signed and numbered", I wondered if you might have
any idea who might "sign" the prints in a "significant" and
meaningful way.
My ideas on this are: someone from the family of John Tenniel,
Lewis Carroll or perhaps Alice Liddell, or perhaps someone
from the Lewis Carroll Society. Of course I would be happy to
receive any further suggestions outside of these four possi-
bilities.
As a first step, we will be bringing out just "The Cheshire
Cat" being by far the most popular of the original 4 posters,
probably in the neighborhood of 1000 prints, to be followed
by the others based on the success (or failure) of the first.
Thanking you very much for consideration and prompt re-
ply,
Sincerely,
Jonathan Gontar
(331)30804762
gontar@club-internet.fr
A bit of correspondence has been going forth between Joel
and Alan Holland, founder of the "Dodo Club, the only Club
in the world for children who love Alice and the Lewis Carroll
stories". Alan was a bit out of sorts over Joel's neglecting to
mention the Club under "Lewis Carroll Related Organizations"
on the Lewis Carroll Home Page (an oversight which has
since been corrected). The Dodo Club was formed in Octo-
ber 1 990 "for the purpose of interesting and informing young
people about Lewis Carroll, his life and times." Alan has been
in touch for all these years with a Miss Alexandra (Xie) Fye,
who, when she was ten, inspired him to start it - he calls her
the "Cheshire Catalyst" as she lives near Daresbury. She is
now, at the tender age of seventeen, taking over the Club,
and the "Dodo News", which is sent out every two months
with "sixteen pages of pictures, articles, puzzles, jokes - all
sorts of things. Although the club is for children, adults are
allowed to join as Associates. The Dodo year is from Octo-
ber to September and whenever you join, you will be sent all
the issues of the News for the current year."
Subscriptions
U.K.
Europe
Other
1 6 and under Adult
£3.50 £9.00
£5.00 £10.00
£12.00 £12.00
All prices are in British Pounds Sterling. U.K. cheques should
be made out to The Dodo Club. U.S. checks should be made
out to The Lewis Carroll Society. If you send currency other
than U.K. please add about one fifth extra to cover Bank
charges.
Send cheques to Xie Fye, 22 Brian Avenue, Stockton
Heath, Warrington, Cheshire, WA4 2BG, England.
Alan Holland
89, Ffordd Pentre
Mold, Flintshire
1 Wales CH7 1UY
Morton Cohen Made a Fellow
Our own Morton Cohen has been made a Fellow of
the Royal Society of Literature in London. This is a great
accolade and the Society heartily congratulates Morton on
this well deserved honor. Here is the text of the press release:
Morton N. Cohen, Professor Emeritus of the City
University of New York, has been made a Fellow of the Royal
Society of Literature in London. Cohen has written and ed-
ited more than a dozen books on Victorian literature, among
them a biography of H. Rider Haggard, a volume of Rudyard
Kipling's letters, and eight books on Lewis Carroll. His biog-
raphy of Carroll, published recently by Alfred Knopf in the
U.S.A. and MacMillan in the U.K., is in its second printing in
both countries. Paperback versions are to appear this au-
tumn. Cohen has also written children's books and dozens of
scholarly and popular articles in newspapers and journals.
Born in Calgary, Canada, Cohen grew up on the
North Shore of Massachusetts, was graduated from Chelsea
High School and earned his B.A. at Tufts University. He
holds an M. A. and Ph.D. from Columbia University. He taught
for over thirty years at the City College and in the Ph.D.
program at the Graduate Center of the City University. He
has held two Fulbright Fellowships, a Guggenheim Fellow-
ship, and two Fellowships from the National Endowment of
the Humanities. He lives in New York.
The Royal Society of Literature was founded by
King George IV in 1 823. Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II is
patron.
Whilst we're on the subject, congratulations are
also due to Edward Wakeling for his honorary M.A. from the
University of Luton for his work on the diaries.
LCSNA Meeting Plans
Here are some sketchy notes about upcoming meetings. Fur-
ther details in the next Knight Letter.
Spring '97 - Fales Library Reading Room at New York Uni-
versity, April 19. Speakers: Fran Abeles on Martin Gardner,
Jeff Ellis on the Victorian photographic process with an em-
phasis on Carroll's photo of Agnes Weld, and Chatham Ewing
on humor. Lunch at the Knickerbocker.
Fall '97 - Minnesota. We will combine efforts with St. Johns
University as part of their first annual Creativity Conference.
There may be an Alice production, music recital, and exhibit
as well.
Spring '98 -New York. This will be a two-day meeting with
events throughout the week, in honor of the centennial of
Carroll's death. Saturday at the Morgan, Saturday night din-
ner in honor of Morton Cohen at the Century Club. Sunday
at NYU. We may have trips to Princeton and the Rosenbach
during the week. Readings at the statue in Central Park.
Fall ' 98 - L.A. Two-day meeting. Huntington Library and
UCLA. Exhibit.
<»3r
Or was it I na?
K£ 8c
The (London) Times Literary Supplement of 3 May
1 996 carried a speculative article by one Karoline Leach pur-
porting to solve the primary mystery in our canon - why, in
late June of 1863, a year after the boating expedition, was
there a sudden breach in the relations between Dodgson and
the Liddell family? Conventional wisdom (and Morton
Cohen's superb recent biography) has it that he may have
proposed some sort of engagement to Alice, who was eleven
at the time. Of course, since the four volumes of his diary
disappeared and the others were excised by some well-mean-
ing but misguided relative, the mystery will never be truly
solved. Ms. Leach claims to have found a scrap of paper
written in the hand of Violet Dodgson, Carroll's niece, "tucked
away among a mass of Dodgson family records in the archive
at Guildford." Entitled "Cut pages to Diary", it contains the
curious note "Vol.8. Page 92. L.C. learns from Mrs. Liddell
that he is supposed to be using the children as a means of
paying court to the governess - He is also supposed (illeg-
ible) to be courting Ina." We can summarily dismiss the ru-
mors of Mr. Dodgson and the governess, Miss Prickett, which
had been dealt with in his diaries of 1 857 (May 1 7) as "ground-
less". But Lorina, "Ina", was a tall, precociously developed
fourteen-year-old in an age when girls were legally marriage-
able at twelve. On 1 7 April 1 863, Dodgson comments on her
advanced development and notes that Mrs. Liddell had, for
the first time, insisted on a chaperone. And in June? Ms.
Leach fortunately draws no firm conclusions, but presents
us with a tantalizing riddle.
Sherlock Holmes in Orbit
Review by Richard M. Boothe
I write to bring to the LCSNA's attention three tales
linking the Great Detective with Alice in a recent anthology,
edited by Mike Resnick and Martin H. Greenberg (New York:
DAW Books, cl 995). The editors commissioned twenty-seven
contemporary science fiction and fantasy authors to com-
pose pastiches placing Holmes (and Watson, mostly) in sun-
dry fantastic and/or science fictional situations.
In Mark Bourne's charming "The Case of the
Detective's Smile", a nameless lady of a certain age calls on
Holmes to present him with an intricate cut-glass case. From
hints that both she and Holmes let drop, the reader (if not
Bourne's Watson) soon deduces that she is Alice
Hargreaves, nee Liddell, and that Sherlock Holmes spent part
of the Great Hiatus in Wonderland! (He was also, it emerges,
a promising student under a certain math lecturer at Oxford).
She has just returned from a visit to what must be Wonder-
land, occasioned by a dear friend's death. Bourne's Alice
(for it is indeed she) confides that she narrated her childhood
adventures to this friend (in real-
ity it was vice versa; this is artistic
license on Bourne's part). Under a
nom deplume he revised them for
public consumption, even as
Watson revises Holmes' adven-
tures. Anyway, the inhabitants of
Wonderland, the Queen of Hearts in particular, have commis-
sioned her to present Holmes with a token of their apprecia-
tion for this brilliant solution to the Case of the Stolen Tarts.
The glass case contained a never-fading smile from the
Cheshire Cat.
The second story has Alice as a bit player. In
"Mouse and the Master", Brian M. Thompson's P.I. narrator
is hired by Holmes to infiltrate a (fraudulent) seance attended
by Dr. Watson and other famous fictional characters. The
contacts they seek "on the other side" are obviously their
creators (Henry Jekyll hopes to reach "Robert", etc.) Alice
Liddell seeks to ask both "Lewis" and "Charles" about an
antique mirror in her father's study. Thompson passes in
silence over their replies from the other side.
So far, so harmless. It is the third pastiche that con-
tains errors that must offend every decent Carrollian.
Lawrence Schimel's "Alimentary, My Dear Watson" has Mrs.
Hudson [Holmes ' landlady] cooking the White Rabbit, or
possibly the March Hare, for Holmes and Watson's day-
after-Christmas dinner (offstage, thank God). Meanwhile,
Watson draws accurate inferences from the Mad Hatter's
hat. Said hat and Rabbit (its neck broken) were brought to
Holmes by Mrs. Bugle, Charles Dodgson's landlady, as two
clues to his mysterious disappearance from his London resi-
dence (!). She also saw a cracked looking-glass. Mrs. Bugle
fears no one will care for Alice, Dodgson's niece (!), who
lives with him(!) in London. Holmes and Watson visit the
residence and find Alice playing tea-time with imaginary com-
panions and her cat. She identifies a pocket-watch set fifteen
minutes fast as the March Hare's(!) Holmes spots the "Drink
Me" bottle (confirmed by a taste test that shrinks him several
inches), which Alice admits she had the Hatter and Hare
bring to her. Why? Brace yourselves. Shimel puts words in
Alice's mouth accusing Dodgson of sexually molesting her
(!!!), shameful words that I dare not repeat here. Alice cries a
puddle of tears. Soon she quotes almost verbatim the phrase
about her cat Dinah's mouse- and bird-eating. "Or a man,"
Holmes asks, "shrunk down to the size of a mouse?" At that,
Dinah vanishes in the manner of the Cheshire Cat. Back at
Baker Street, Holmes suggests that Watson's notes show
Dodgson died of "consumptions".
Whether these errors are due to artistic license or
poor research, I am sure you will agree that Mr. Schimel goes
beyond the pale. I recommend that we dispatch a Victorian
schoolmistress to give him a firm tongue-lashing.
[Richard- are you familiar with In Pursuit of Lewis Carroll
by Raphael Shaberman, in which "Sherlock Holmes and
the Author uncover new evidence in their investigation
into the mysterious life and writings of Lewis Carroll"?
Greenwich Exchange Ltd, 1994, 1-871551-13-7. I'd be
interested in your reaction]
The Universe in a Handkerchief, Lewis
Carroll's Mathematical Recreations, Games,
Puzzles, and Word Plays by Martin Gardner
This book has an lamentable history, as it was
supposed to come out under the imprint of our Society.
While Fran Abeles has done an excellent job for us in pro-
ducing The Mathematical Pamphlets of Charles Ludwidge
Dodgson (LCSNA, $65. 0-930326-09-1 ), Martin elected to
go off on his own, and this is
the result. It is filled with
puzzles and games, most of
which have seen the light of
day before, and facsimiles of
some of Carroll's more obscure
pamphlets. The book has the
feeling of being done in haste,
as where Gardner quotes the
verse which includes the qua-
dratic equation published
elsewhere in this issue and
notes "unfortunately, no value
of jc will solve the quadratic
equation." He means no real
value of x, a careless omis-
sion. Complex numbers were
quite familiar to Dodgson
(having gained acceptance
since the pioneering work of
Girolamo Cardan's Ars Magna, first published in 1 545) and
surely Mr. Carroll would have no problems in the realm of
the imaginary. Furthermore, that verse was first published
in Phantasmagoria (1869) and then reprinted in
Rhyme? and Reason? (1883), which is Gardener's cited
source. Copernicus (Springer- Verlag) 0-387-94673-X, $19.
Oh, Doctor!
Whilst perusing James Thurber: His Life and
Times by Harrison Kinney (Henry Holt), August Imholtz
found reference to an article defending Carroll against the
onslaught of psychiatric interpretations which had been
published in Forum magazine (March 1937). Intrepid re-
searcher that he is, he found a copy of the Forum article
"Tempest in a Looking Glass", where Thurber takes to task
one Dr. Paul Schilder who delivered a lecture to the Ameri-
can Psychoanalytic Institute finding the Alice books "so
full of cruelty, fear, and 'sadistic trends of cannibalism'
that he questioned its wholesomeness as literature for chil-
dren." Thurber's passionately protective arguments for
Carroll ended with the quotation in "Serendipity", above.
Serendipity
"[I should like to quote] Dr. Morton
Prince, a truly intelligent psychologist.
He was speaking of multiple personality
when he wrote it but he might have been
speaking of the folk tales of the world
or of the creatures and creations of
Lewis Carroll: 'Far from being mere
freaks, monstrosities of consciousness,
they are in fact shown to be manifesta-
tions of the very constitution of life'"
James Thurber
A Mathematical Approach to Proportional
Representation:Duncan Black on Lewis Carroll
edited by Iain McLean, Alistair McMillan and Burt L. Mon-
roe, Boston/Dordrecht/London: Kluwer, 1996, 189 pp.
Review by Francine F. Abeles
The editors of this book are responsible for the pres-
ervation of Duncan Black's (1908-1991) papers now at the
University of Glasgow. Black, an economist with a strong
interest in political science best known for his classic book
The Theory of Committees and Elections (1958), left an im-
mense store of documents, books and papers, including chap-
ter plans and versions of chapters for a book on Lewis
Carroll's theory of proportional representation (PR). The book
under review is the completion of this project which occu-
pied the final thirty years of Black's
life.
McLean et al. provide a
rich description of the nineteenth
century political scene when En-
gland was evolving from an aris-
tocracy to a democracy. The set-
ting for Carroll's ideas has as back-
drop the Reform Acts of 1 832, 1 867
and 1884, and the Ballot Act of
1 872. Politically, one and two mem-
ber constituencies were at were
the rule, each voter having as
many noncumulative votes as
there were seats in Parliament. The
two political parties were the Con-
servatives and the Liberals, and
each party usually polled to within
five percent of its pre-election pre-
dictions. Until 1 872, open voting
that showed how each elector cast
his votes made this possible. The Reform Acts successively
extended the franchise to the merchant and industrial classes,
urban workers, agricultural workers and miners, but in a way
that did not increase representation fairly. Some members of
Parliament were elected by fifty thousand voters; other by
only a thousand. Some large cities had three member con-
stituencies where voters had only two votes and conse-
quently they felt cheated. The redistribution of Parliament's
seats in June 1885 to districts of roughly equal population
addressed these problems.
It was the atmosphere surrounding the 1884 bill,
passed in December, that between May and November moti-
vated Carroll to write a pamphlet and six letters to the St.
James Gazette. As he saw it, using a plurality voting rule in
single member districts (the bill was proposing this change)
with roughly an equal number of supporters for each party,
could produce a disproportionate number of seats being al-
lotted to the larger Liberal party at the expense of the smaller
Conservative party.
The editors explain that in the USA representation
has a physical meaning whereas in England the meaning is
political. A legislative body is physically representative if
each major group in the population is proportionally repre-
sented, and it is politically representative if the political
parties have the same percentage of seats as the percentage
of votes given them in the election.
Black planned a book in four parts. McLean et al.
have followed his wishes, confining their own overview to a
thirty page Introduction with a list of ninety-nine references.
They write, "The Principles (of Parliamentary Representa-
tion) is the earliest known work to discuss both the assign-
ment of seats to each of a number of multi-member districts
(the apportionment problem) and the assignment of seats
within each district to the parties (the PR problem)."
Part I, "The Life and Logic of Lewis CarrolF', in-
cludes the major subsection, "Government by Logic". Here
Black revisits Carroll's work on majority rule theory in the
three pamphlets he published between 1 873 and 1 876, gives
his quite negative view of Carroll as a mathematician, and his
opinions about the influence of Carroll's intensive dislike of
H.G.Liddell, Dean of Christ Church and Alice's father, on
Carroll's own writings. For example, Black argues the in The
Hunting of the Snark, the Bellman is Liddell, and the Baker,
not the Beaver, is Carroll.
The editors have added Black's further thought on
Carroll's logical thinking gleaned from the records he kept as
Curator of the Christ Church Common Room, and in three
letters to the Editor of The Times, concerning "frogs in coal"
which Black uses to explain the origin of the Frog-Footman
in the "Pig and Pepper" chapter of Alice's Adventures in
Wonderland.
Part II, "The Principles of Parliamentary Represen-
tation", is an edited version of Black's previously published
work on Carroll's theory of PR, three articles that appeared
between 1 967 and 1 970 that included his understanding of
Carroll's arguments in an historical and psychological set-
ting. For example, Black believed that Carroll's interest in the
PR issue stemmed from a division in himself over his love for
Edith Denman ( 1 855-1 884).
The third and longest part is Black's analysis of
Carroll's theory of PR, his unpublished material providing
the raison d 'etre for this book. Here we have Black's view on
CarroH's three pamphlets on PR, and Black's formulation and
proof of CarroH's theorem on quota which he shows to be
equivalent to d'Hondt's quota for allocating seats in a legis-
lative body to the political parties. (Victor d'Hondt (1841-
1 90 1 ), Belgian mathematician)
The final section of this part, dealing with the allo-
cation of parliamentary member to each district in proportion
to its number of voter, Black left incomplete. The editors have
continued with the exposition they believe he intended, and
added their own evaluation of the result.
Part IV contains the reprints of Carroll's pamphlets
on PR and the main sources Black thought influenced them,
by Garth Marshall (1802- 1873) and Walter Bailey (1837-1917),
together with comments. These are rare pieces, difficult to
locate, and we should be grateful to the editors for making
them available.
Both Black and Carroll wrote about voting theory:
Black, the professional, because it was his work; Carroll, the
dilettante, because he was responding to external events that
required the support of fundamental principles to guarantee
fairness of application. Black experienced much difficulty
getting his work published; Carroll's serious work went un-
recognized. Black established Carroll's high reputation in the
theory of majority rule (social choice) in his 1958 book, and
the editors lay out the reasons. By presenting the fruits of
Black's continued quest to establish the importance of
Carroll's contributions to PR, they have shown for both of
them the originality of their thinking and the priority of then-
work.
Regrettably, Black did not keep up with modern in-
terpretations of Carroll's life and work which mars much of
his evaluation of Carroll's intellectual and psychological sides.
Surprising too, is that Black did not seem to know the work of
Peter Fishburn who has written extensively on Carroll's theory
of majority rule (The Theory of Social Choice, Princeton:
Princeton University Press, 1973)
As this review establishes, much more than PR is
discussed which the title of the book does not reflect. Also,
Black wrote an article on Carroll's theory of PR in
Jabberwocky that the editors inexplicably have not men-
tioned ("Evaluating Carroll's Theory of Parliamentary Repre-
sentation", Vol. 1 , no. 4, Summer 1 970). In their discussion of
the maximin criterion (Nash equilibrium strategy), the editors
have not accurately described the contribution to game
theory by the mathematician John F. Nash. They write, "As
game theory had not been invented and Nash not born, it
was not surprising that Carroll's pamphlet (The Principles of
Parliamentary Representation) had not been understood."
Nash did not define the concept of an equilibrium point -
that had been done early in the nineteenth century by
A.A.Cournot (Researches into the Mathematical Principles
of the Theory of Wealth, 2nd ed., translated from the original
French edition ( 1 838) by N.T.Bacon, New York: Kelley 1 97 1
{ 1 st ed. Macmillan 1 929} .) What Nash achieved was the proof
that equilibrium points actually exist in a wide variety of non-
cooperative games. ("Non-Cooperative Games", Annals of
Mathematics {2} 54 {1951})
There is a number of typographical errors, none
important, the most egregious being the duplicated section
on pp. 72-3. However, Kluwer, a well-respected publisher of
academic books, could have expended greater effort in pro-
ducing the index which lacks sufficient depth and omits pages
that ought to be listed under existing headings.
This book will be appreciated by the informed reader
as an addition to the opera of both Black and Carroll, and by
the specialist in voting theory interested in aspects of its
history. But it cannot be considered a completely reliable
addition to our understanding of the intellectual and psy-
chological dimensions of Lewis Carroll.
Alice at Fry's
by Hilda Bohem
Prompted by chagrin at not having visited Alice,
even though I live 400 miles closer to Fry's Electronics than
our editor, I hastened to Woodland Hills - at a pace befitting
my years - to make sure his reported wonders of Fry's Won-
derland weren't an exaggeration.
I had been reluctant to go because I was afraid they
might have Disneyed it up; but, no, they've been faithful to
Tenniel. As Mark told you, Fry's Woodland Hills is a hun-
dred- thousand square foot electronics emporium designed
around a Wonderland theme. Still, he didn't begin to convey
- and I can't either - the almost breath-stopping excitement
of it all. Enumerating the giant figures certainly doesn't do it
justice. Each aisle produces such a delicious surprise that
you can scarcely look at the merchandise. You turn a corner
and - "Oh, there's the Red Queen!" Or the White Knight, or
just about anyone you can think of. Have they forgotten
anyone? You need only to explore a little further and you're
sure to find him. As is fitting, an enormous Alice greets you
at the entrance. Beside her is an equally enormous book
opened to a page of Wonderland complete with annotations
by Martin Gardner. Appearing throughout the store, such
books are suspended from the ceiling at an angle that makes
them easily readable, and each has text chosen to amplify,
explain, or embellish nearby figures.
It is essential to share the thrill of discovery with
someone, someone who can help you marvel and wonder
and enjoy. I went with Stan Kurman, a true Carroll devotee,
who used to have (until he sold it) an extraordinary Carroll
collection. He was the perfect companion to share such an
adventure, positively exploding with appreciation and de-
light at the inventive use of the Alice theme. When I had
seen the obvious, Stan saw an additional nuance, as, for
instance, in the chandeliers. I was so busy admiring their
delightful oyster and hookah and tea-set embellishments, I
missed seeing the chess pawns shading the light bulbs. And
the playing cards! I was so involved with what was under by
nose (well, not really under, you know) that I never lifted my
eyes ceilingward - the ceiling is miles above eye-level - to
see the great pack of cards scattered in wildly undulating
flight.
We both felt frustrated by the absence of an infor-
mative brochure with pictures and some history, if not about
Alice, at least about this incredible exhibition and about whom
to credit for such an extravagance of taste and imagination.
Finally, we found the store manager and he was able to an-
swer a few of our questions, like why Alice, why not Mr. Toad
or Pooh and Piglet; and he told us that Alice had a very
personal meaning for the Fry brothers. Not only is their
mother's name Alice, she was oevoted to the Alice books
and read them to her children as they were growing up. When
they built their store here in Woodland Hills and wanted to
dedicate it to their mother, they could think of no better trib-
ute than to decorate it with her favorite book. This informa-
tion partly satisfied our curiosity but we still didn't know
who deserved credit for the cleverness and excellence of the
theme's execution. The trouble is, no one thinks of this store
as a work of art or an exhibition. It's just one more of the
many Fry enterprises, each with its own unique decorations.
None of the others has a children's theme, and yet the only
indication that somebody realizes how special it is is that
picture taking is not allowed.
Frustrated or not, we left with the intention of re-
turning the very next time either of us had a youngster in
tow-perhaps even sooner than that. And just so it shouldn't
be a total loss, should you go and not agree with me, you can
at least buy, at discount prices, the latest in electronic equip-
ment.
[Although Fry's is frightfully possessive about Us designer
for no apparent reason, Eric Christensen of Christensen
Designs in Sausalito, California (as mentioned in KL #50)
is responsible for all Fry's productions - whether of outer
space, ancient Egypt, or what-have-you -for their themed
retail outlets.]
Signs of the times: an elderly
Carrollian went into a San Francisco
toy and book store looking for
Edward Wakeling's Alice card game.
The young lady sales clerk looked at
him in a superior manner and
sneered, "We do not carry any
Disney items."! - Sandor Burstein
Answers to limericks on p.3:
1 . Lewis Carroll's poetic quadratic equation has the solution
[445
or -3.5 ± 6.0896085 /, which is complex
x = -3.5 ± A / / (containing the square root of- 1 ), some-
what irrelevant, and has nary a 42 in
sight (except in the proof)- The fun is in the pronunciation, as
it is in the other two "limericks".
2. Integral z squared dz
From 1 to the cube root of 3
Times the cosine
Of3rcover9
Is the log of the cube root of e
[the equation is mathematically correct, by the way]
3. Eight billion three hundred and sixty-
Five million two hundred and fifty-
Nine thousand four hun-
Dred and seventy one
Point nine eight four five oh two six three
Fnik Our rw-tfm
Books V
The Natural History of Make-Believe
by John Goldlhwaite. "A literary history
is a chronicle of how books have be-
gotten books" and thus the author
traces the connections which have in-
tertwined in the history of children's lit-
erature. Arguing that Alice did not
spring Athena-like from Carroll's brow
on that "golden afternoon" but rather
that this tale of its creation was promoted
by Carroll himself to disguise the debt
he owed to his great rival, Charles
Kingsley, the clergyman-author of The
Water Babies. Oxford University Press,
$30.
Edward Wakeling's/l//ce; in Wonderland
Puzzle Book (Cove Press, ISBN 1 -5728 1 -
006-8) contains both Lewis Carroll
puzzles and new ones invented by the
author. The Alice in Wonderland House
of Cards Deck has Tenniel designs and
some additional ones by Brian Partridge
(0-88079-702-9). They are packaged as
a "Deck and Book Set" and are avail-
able from U.S.Games Systems at 179
Ludlow Street, Stamford CT 06902.
203.353.8400 or 800.544.2637. Also from
Museum of Fine Arts, Boston (below).
The End of Alice by A.M. Homes. Ac-
cording to reviews, this "reptilian" bit
of pornography about an aging sex of-
fender in prison and his correspondents
slogs through a thoroughly disgusting
sexual obsession while liberally quot-
ing from the Alice books. Scribner, 1 996
Alice in Bed, a play by Susan Sontag,
"a free dramatic fantasy on the life of
Alice James, the brilliant sister of Will-
iam and Henry" wherein she "merges
imaginatively with the other great Alice
of her period [Miss Liddelf] ... is a play
about the anguish and grief and rage of
women." Farrar, Straus, Giroux, $25. 0-
374-10273-2.
The Jade Cabinet by Rikki Ducornet.
"Made speechless by her eccentric fa-
ther, the beautiful Etheria is traded for a
piece of precious jade. Memory, her sis-
ter, tells her story, that of a childhood
enlivened by Lewis Carroll and an oran-
gutan named Dr. Johnson. . . TSimouser
and curiouser. Dalkey Archive Press,
$20.1 -56478-02 1-X.
The New Bedside, Bathtub & Armchair
Companion to Agatha Christie con-
tains "A Macabre Tea Party" satire with
sleuths Poirot and Marple. Ungar Pub-
lishing, 1993. 0-8044-5803-0, 0-8044-
6725-0 (pbk).
Alice s Adventures in Wonderland, with
Paintings by Angel Dominguez was re-
cently published by Artisan (Workman
Publishing). The 75 watercolors by the
Spanish master are whimsical and sur-
real. $25. 18851 83-47-x.
JefFNoon's A utomated Alice (illustrated
by Harry Trumbore), a line-by-line, inci-
dent-by incident parody of Alice s Ad-
ventures is a futuristic, farcical,
postmodernist mystery abounding with
puns and puzzles. Crown Publishers,
$21.0-517-70490-0.
Dreamhouse by Alison Habens. A re-
view states: "think Alice in Wonderland
presented not by Masterpiece Theatre
but through Benny Hill sketches, if
Benny Hill were a twentysomething femi-
nist woman," an interesting stretch of
the imagination. The book traces the
engagement of Celia (anagramatic) and
her drug-fueled adventures with her
neighbor Dodge. An erotic, satiric com-
ing-of-age murder mystery. Picador, $23.
The Wonderland Gambit by Jack
Chalker (Del Rey Science Fiction). Book
Two, The March Hare Network, has
been recently published, following Book
One, The Cybernetic Walrus, and an-
ticipating Book Three, The Hot-Wired
Dodo.
Articles
In a story in Art News, March 1 996, men-
tion is made of Charles Carpenter's in-
heritance of Charles Shaw's estate in
1974. Among the items was Alice
Liddell's looking-glass "which she had
decorated as a child with Sir John
Tenniel's illustrations for the books she
inspired."
Discover Magazine, July 1996, has an
article "Alice in Yttriumland" which de-
scribes a mirror which becomes trans-
parent in the presence of hydrogen gas.
Under the heading of "Through the
Looking Glass" descriptions are given
of a reflecting sheet of paladium-coated
yttrium a few mill ionths of an inch thick
which becomes transparent in an atmo-
sphere of hydrogen. When the gas is
pumped out of the jar, the "window"
becomes a mirror again. While Philips,
the Dutch company, has patented the
material, they have not yet developed a
practical application for it. Perhaps they
should consult an 1 872 travel book, well-
known to readers of this journal.
Journal of Combinatorial Theory, Se-
ries B 67, 34-47 ( 1 996) contains the ar-
ticle "Snarks without Small Cycles" by
Martin Kochol. Snarks are nontrivial
cubic graphs whose edges cannot be
colored with three colors. They discuss
the "girth conjecture*' of these objects
which were named by Martin Gardner.
Computers and Cyberspace
Synergy Interactive has an adventure
game CD-ROM titled "Alice" derived
from the books. $50 from Educorp Mul-
timedia. 800.843.9497.
"Perseus" is an evolving digital library
which currently focuses upon the an-
cient Greek world. Its website, http://
www.perseus.tufts.edu/lexica.html, con-
tains a hyperlinked version of the Inter-
mediate Liddell-Scott Greek Lexicon,
written by Alice's father.
Art and Artifacts
"Sir John Tenniel's wonderful drawings
have, on the whole, remained
uncoloured in black and white except
for sixteen illustrations which were
coloured by Harry Theaker in 1 9 1 1 ." So
begins a press release. Redundancy
aside, I do not understand this asser-
tion. There have been dozens, if not
hundreds, of colorings of this material,
including the well-known Fritz Kredel
ones. In any case, Macmillan has
embarked on a licencing and merch-
andizing program using these illustra-
tions and commissioned Francine Black
to paint the 72 remaining illustrations in
the style of Harry Theaker. Her original
watercolorings are now available for
sale at £200 framed or £150 mounted.
Contact Francine Blake (nee Black),
P.O.Box 939, Devizes, Wiltshire, England
SN10 3TA. 01 1 .441.380.860000.
Fitz & Floyd's "Mad Hatter" teapot is
available from Horchow's for around
$60.800.456.7000.
Cityboy Studios presented a showcase
"The Madness of Alice" featuring seven
original acrylic-on-canvas interpreta-
tions of the characters, and associated
limited-edition prints. For information
contact Brian Woldman at 300 Brannan
Street, Suite 605, San Francisco CA
94117.415.546.3139.
"The Knave of Heart's Trial" scene from
The Nursery Alice is now a miniature
"Jigsaw-for-the-Bookshelf" puzzle
#JM01. The Museums and Galleries
Collection at better games and puzzles
shops.
The Postal Commemorative Society is
offering a "captivating treasury of in-
ternational Disney stamps matched with
authentic Disney art panels," including
one of Alice from Grenada. 47 Richards
Ave., NorwalkCT 06857. 800.641.8026.
The second in the Hallmark Alice series
of "Keepsake Ornament Collector's"
thimbles is the Mad Hatter. $7.
The "Upstart" catalog for teachers fea-
tures the Alice characters in a bookmark
($6.25 for a package of 200) and a poster
($4) with the slogan "So Many Books,
So Little Time". 800.448.4887.
The hookah-smoking caterpillar is avail-
able on a Zippo lighter. $25 in chrome or
$30 in solid brass. 888.564.5797 or http:/
/www.axiscom.com/cloud/zippo6.html.
Bizarrely humorous renderings of the
characters on T-shirts can be found at
http://www.over-the-edge.com/alice/
test.htm These shirts can be ordered via
the web or by calling 888.828.432 1 . They
said they would give LCSN A members
a 10% discount. Also available from
What on Earth, 800.945.2552.
The McDonald's chain offers a Disney
Alice doll with a Cheshire Cat stand (in
purple plastic) with its Happy Meal #7
as part of a cross-promotion for the
Disney videotape.
Hand-blown glass Alice Xmas orna-
ments from the Smithsonian catalog. $27
apiece or $ 1 25 for the set. 800.322.0344.
A "pillowy-soft" 1 8" Alice doll from the
Museum of Fine Arts, Boston $28.
800.225.5592.
Die-cut note cards that become stand-
up figures, colored from the Tenniel
drawings. Twelve cards (four charac-
ters). $13 from the Metropolitan Mu-
seum of Art catalog. 800.468.7386.
Rex Games has repackaged its
WordTrek® (Carroll's Doublets) game
with the Alice characters on the box.
$1 for LCSNA members. 800.542.6375.
Christopher Radko: the First Decade
1986-1995 is a book that tells of how
he set out to recapture the art form of
creating European glass-blown Christ-
mas Ornaments. His first Alice orna-
ments were a set of three called "Dream
Alice", produced in 1987 and consist-
ing of simple balls with primitive draw-
ings of the Duchess with pig baby, Alice,
and the Cheshire Cat. I would have to
say they were pretty awful. He didn't
do another until 1994 when he did the
"Queen's Hare" (White Rabbit as Her-
ald) which was a shaped ornament and
the one I liked best. (Still available for
$28.) Recently he has done several or-
naments of blown glass in the Italian
style. In 1985 he did "Into Mischief, a
Disneyesque Cheshire Cat. This year he
added an Alice, White Rabbit, and
Painter Cards. They run about $45 each.
A limited edition Tweedle Dee/Tweedle
Dum is available from one store only,
the Glass Pheasant in San Francisco,
which can be ordered over the toll free
number 800.255.7179. This is also a
shaped ornament with both Tweedles
connected along one side like Siamese
twins. Actually this one is not bad ei-
ther. - Joel
Audio and Video
A four CD album entitled "Enclosure
Two: Historic Speech-Music Recordings
from the Harry Partch Archives" (Innova
401 ) featuring the work of the eccentric
visionary Harry Partch includes a set-
ting of Jabberwocky. American Com-
posers Forum, 325 Minnesota St. #E-
145, St.PaulMN 55101/612.228.1407.
The Princess Collection videos at the
Disney stores contain a story about
Belle, and involves some mischief
wrought by two bookworms named
Lewis and Carroll.
Places and Events
The Groton Bulletin, Vol. 14 #2, Febru-
ary 1996 (Groton School, Groton MA)
was primarily about the students' Janu-
ary production of AIW. Mentioned in
the cast was one student who played
"The Rock" in the Mock Turtle scene
and an eight-year old who was the
"Squash who turned into a door".
A big-budget special effects extrava-
ganza of Alice Through the Looking
Glass played at the Avon Theatre in
Stratford through November 2nd. No,
not that one. The Stratford in Ontario,
Canada.
Eve Le Galleine's stage adaptation will
be presented in the Westhoff Theatre
of Illinois State Universtiy in Normal, 1L
Nov 22 - Dec 7.
An adaptation by the Omaha Theatre
Company will be presented at the Para-
mount Theater in Austin TX February
9-10,1997.
The National Theatre of the Deaf s tour-
ing production of "Curiouser &
Curiouser" plays around the country
through March. For tour dates call
860.526.4971 or see our web site.
Alice in Opera Ixind will be presented
by Donald Pippin's Pocket Opera in
Walnut Creek CA on December 1 4th and
in San Francisco on December 22nd.
Alice learns about the world of opera,
sung in English, through the music of
Offenbach, Verdi, Rossini, Mozart and
others. lor children or adults. Call
5 1 0.943.7469 (Walnut Creek tickets) or
415.575.1 102 for San Francisco tickets
and information.
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dot" *Moloim*d
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p*rpl*nity . o/
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/hould*r. and
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ono hod to toko
oorooltvjo
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This is the fourth in a series of special illustrations for the Knight Letter by the versatile Leslie Allen.
For help in preparing this issue thanks are due to: Earl Abbe, Leslie Allen, Hilda Bohem, Sandor Burstein, Morton
Cohen, Johanna Hurwitz, August Imholtz, Vito Lanza, Lucille Posner, Stephanie Stoffel, and Jan Susina.
Knight Letter is the official newsletter of the Lewis Carroll Society of North America. It is published several times a year
and is distributed free to all members. Subscriptions, business correspondence, and inquiries should be addressed to
the Secretary, 1 8 Fitzharding Place, Owing Mills MD 21117. Annual membership dues are U.S. $20 (regular) and $50
(sustaining). Submissions and editorial correspondence should be sent to the Editor, Box 2006, Mill Valley CA 94942.
President: Joel Birenbaum, joel.birenbaum@lucent.com Secretary: Ellie Luchinsky, eluchin@epfl 1 .epflbalto.org
Editor: Mark Burstein, wrabbit@worldpassage.net
Lewis Carroll Society of North America Home Page: http://www.students.uiuc.edu/~jbirenba/lcsnahp.html
The Lewis Carroll Home Page: http://www.students.uiuc.edu/~jbirenba/carroll.html
